Will Muschamp kept his word — and improved his first full recruiting class Wednesday — by getting one of the state’s top commits to do the opposite.
After losing to bitter rival Florida State on Nov. 26, Muschamp pledged to rebuild Florida through the recruiting process, starting first with the lines of scrimmage. The Gators made a big splash in that regard on National Signing Day when five-star St. Petersburg Lakewood defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. switched his commitment from the Seminoles, deciding instead to spend his college career in Gainesville.
Fowler is the eighth recruit in Florida’s 2012 class who plays on the defensive line. In all, Muschamp nabbed 14 line-of-scrimmage players to help bring UF’s class to the No. 3 national ranking, according to Rivals.com.
“You recruit through this process and sometimes when you get there on signing day, you’re leaving it up to the young man and his family to make a decision,” Muschamp said. “We’re excited to add another good pass rusher to our program.”
In addition to Fowler, the Gators inked the No. 1 overall defensive end, five-star Jonathan Bullard out of Shelby (N.C.) Crest High, and two four-star tackles in junior college transfer Damien Jacobs and Venice High’s Dante Phillips. UF also added three more defensive ends, including Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas’ Bryan Cox Jr.
“I certainly feel like we’ve addressed our most pressing need on both lines of scrimmage,” Muschamp said. “I’m really excited about the guys we’ve got in that group.”
Florida finished 40th in rushing defense last season, but the team was gashed considerably during four straight losses in October to Alabama, LSU, Auburn and Georgia, allowing an average of 201 yards on the ground. Conversely, the Gators couldn’t get the run game going on offense during those games, averaging just 43.8 yards during the losing streak despite a per-game mark of 187.1 in all others.
Countless times, Muschamp has pointed to the Southeastern Conference being a line-of-scrimmage league, and countless times, he pointed to his team’s struggles in that area as the catalyst for a disappointing season. Florida had to crosstrain players at multiple positions along the defensive line, and that lack of depth certainly played into the defensively heavy nature of this year’s class.
“We really struggled up front with our depth on the defensive line,” Muschamp said. “We really needed to address that. On the offensive line, we really got everybody back. We added two offensive linemen, certainly that will be more of a focus next year.”
Adding to the bulk in this class, Muschamp secured commitments from the No. 1 offensive lineman, five-star tackle D.J. Humphries, as well as four-star Boynton Beach guard Jessamen Dunker, who comes to UF with SEC-ready size at 6-foot-4, 320 pounds. Both have enrolled early and will participate in spring practice, something Muschamp said would be a distinct advantage toward seeing the field this fall.
“Them being able to go through 15 days of spring practice is going to be huge,” he said. “They’re both two very good, big athletes who move very well, great feet, change of direction, very flexible, can bend, both powerful guys.”
The Gators also added two of the top tight ends in the nation with the commitments of Kent Taylor and Colin Thompson, a powerful wide receiver in four-star Latroy Pittman and a solid running back in four-star Matt Jones of Seffner Armwood.
They also improved an already deep defensive back seven with the grabs of four-star cornerback Brian Poole, four-star safety Marcus Maye and four-star linebackers Antonio Morrison and Jeremi Powell.
With an impressive haul, Muschamp’s first full class has drawn rave reviews, placing in the top five of every major recruiting service’s rankings. Still, Muschamp said he realizes that stars and rankings mean little once the pads are strapped on.
“We’ll know about this class in two or three years,” he said. “I’ll tell you the same thing I did last year: Football is a developmental game, and you got to develop the players. … It’s not about winning in February. It’s about winning in the fall and developing your football team and addressing your needs, and I think we’ve done that.”